JUNE 12, 1951

HYDE PARK, Monday—On Saturday my son, James, and I drove down to former Secretary of the Treasury Henry
Morgenthau's farm for lunch. While there I bought from him one of the State of Israel
bonds, which I was glad to do.

During an interview on television a little over a week ago I was asked whether I thought
our government should make a grant to Israel. I did not know at the time that a bill
had been introduced in Congress to obtain a government loan and I felt, therefore,
that I could only emphasize the importance to the whole Near East of resettling the
Arab refugees as quickly as possible. Any large group of refugees is a dangerous and
unsettling element in any part of the world, and it seems to me that for the sake
of peace in this area the United Nations and the individual governments interested
should do all they possibly can to bring about a settlement. Loans have already been
asked of us by other states in that area, and when there is a prospect of really doing
something of value to the country I am always glad to see our government willing to
help. Therefore, I will be glad if we aid Israel.

It is important that Israel should reach a sound economic condition as soon as possible.
Israel has accepted a burden of immigration that has emptied many of the refugee camps
of Europe. This has lowered the cost to the United Nations of their operations for
refugees in Europe. In addition, people have come to Israel from many other lands
where they feared persecution or were living under undesirable conditions.

It will require outside aid to start these people on a new life. A democratic and
prosperous Israel can vastly strengthen the position of the whole Near East. This
part of the world needs help from the U.N. and from all the nations that are able
to do a little more than they are now doing even through joint effort. Perhaps before
long a friendlier feeling can be brought about and a unified plan can be made for
the benefit of the whole Middle East area.

It is quite evident that power projects should be undertaken with the interests of
more than one nation in mind, and it is quite certain that reforestation, irrigation
and farming in the desert area would benefit Arab states as well as Israel.

The Arab people pride themselves on their statesmanship and their ability to be far-sighted.
For that reason I hope they will soon begin to think not just of the wrongs of the
past, but of the possibilities of improvements in the future. Instead of being the
tinder box, which everybody watches with anxiety, it might well be that in this area
of the world from which spiritual leadership has so often come in the past, we might
see a demonstration of the will to cooperate. Such action would lift the spirit of
the world.

E. R.

(WORLD COPYRIGHT, 1951, BY UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE, INC. REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR
IN PART PROHIBITED.)